Last weeks + Committee of the Whole May 30, 2022
Last weeks highlights
After about 4.5 years of not being great at taking days off, I had an incredibly restful few days in Alberta forests foraging for morel mushrooms. ‘Councillor’ is a role that doesn’t stop for weekends or holidays, and where meeting and event invitations are ever-present, so I’m trying to improve in terms of taking time off - This was a wonderful start.
Homeland Housing: In an addition to an in-person meeting with our CEO & vice-chair, we held our regular May board meeting in Morinville. Covid pressures are starting to lessen in our residences and we are also one of the recipients of provincial support to help with skyrocketing energy prices, so it was largely a good-news meeting. I also had the pleasure of seeing some of our staff & residents in their Rainmaker Rodeo Parade bus!
Amplify Advisory Committee Launches Comfort Cookbook: The Amplify committee knocked it out of the park for the launch of their cook book. Thanks to everyone who came out on this beautiful evening at Lion’s Park and to City of St. Albert staff for supporting these types of events for our youth!
Rainmaker Rodeo Parade: Thank you to the Kinsmen Club of St. Albert for another amazing Rainmaker Rodeo Parade. After a three-year break, it was wonderful to be back giving out salt water taffy & dog treats!
COW agenda highlights
We’re starting earlier than usual Monday morning with two big items on our agenda:
Procedure Bylaw Update
Our Procedure Bylaw outlines how our meetings work, how motions are dealt with, and how agendas are set. Early in the 2017-2021 term, we updated the bylaw to better suit the needs of that particular Council - This discussion is a similar opportunity to ensure that our procedures are meeting the needs of Council & the community.
Long Term Planning for Debt
Included in this discussion are the current Issues facing the City for debt, projects potentially requiring debt financing, and debt Impacts to the City Future Strategy. As we stare down significantly reduced capital project funding from the province, a projected 7.2% tax increase next year (without service cuts or alternative revenue sources), and a 10-year capital plan that is largely unfunded, this will likely be one of the most impactful discussions of the term.
This is a brief and incomplete overview of my activities as a councillor and Council meetings, with my personal comments sprinkled in - In no way are my opinions representative of the official direction of council or the City of St. Albert. Please let me know of any typos or errors. Residents can register to speak if they have information to present to council. Full agenda packages can be found on the stalbert.ca website.
